Captain Danny Ross' Horrible, No-Good, Very Bad Day
by WendyCR72
Summary: Danny Ross feels the ire of two females in his life following his actions in "Frame". Obviously takes place in Season 7. Silent Bobby in this piece (you'll see what I mean!), but the story is very much about him!


_One of our esteemed fellow authors here – maddiemarch – had asked me about something new since there are so few stories these days in our little fandom. So, after much thought, I came up with this short piece. My thanks to her for giving me a kick in the butt. Not many seemed to cover this, so maybe it'll feel fresh. Of note, there is a line about Wheeler's father within this story. While it never made it to air for whatever reason, an episode synopsis in season 6, for an episode which I cannot recall, talked about Wheeler investigating her criminal father's antics. I used that mention/background here for a reason. With that said, enjoy! Not proofread, so any mistakes are, as always, mine. If you spy any mistakes, feel free to alert me._

His footsteps echoed in the morgue, as the antiseptic cleansers assailed his nose. Spying the familiar figure he came to see, as she filled out a form here and there, Danny Ross cleared his throat.

"Elizabeth."

However, he was unprepared for the coolness that radiated from the exhausted woman before him. "Captain."

His forehead creasing in confusion, Ross knew to tread carefully, having had years of practice in the "War Between the Sexes" in the ceaseless battle otherwise known as his defunct marriage. Elizabeth was staring at him with the same look his former wife often gave in the death throes of their time together. Then resolutely looked again at her clipboard. He felt a bit of a chill, both at the unwelcome memory and a bit of fear that this, too, may be reaching a tipping point.

Faking a little laugh, Ross rejoined, "Captain? It's after office hours, Elizabeth. We can use first names again."

Instead, Liz Rodgers pursed her lips in a thin line. After all that had happened today…

"I'm not feeling very "after hours" right now, Danny." Rodgers' clipped words were out in short, sharp bursts. "As a matter of fact, I'm really not up to this right now." It didn't escape Ross' notice that Rodgers would not look at him.

Forgetting caution, Ross let exasperation leak into his words. "Up to _what_? What the hell is going on, Liz?"

In a fit of pique, Rodgers threw down her clipboard, faced Ross, and crossed her arms.

"You really don't know what you did?"

Ross was feeling the budding of a headache. He rubbed a hand over his face, wondering how he had fallen down the rabbit hole in _Alice in Wonderland_. This wasn't some small thing, judging by Rodgers' palpable anger. But he felt as if he were reading some foreign language and had no idea how to proceed. So he settled for stark honesty.

"No, Liz, I have no idea what has you so irate. Care to fill me in or do you want to hum a few bars?"

His little quip seemed to only make Rodgers angrier. Looking as if she were deciding whether to pummel him, ignore him and walk away, or continue their mystifying exchange, Rodgers suddenly drew herself up ramrod straight, looked him square in the eye, and said, "How dare you jeopardize my standing with your detectives."

Ross immediately felt his stomach churn, remembering earlier in the interminably long day, telling Rodgers about Goren, about everyone having a bull's eye on their backs…

"Look, Liz…"

But Rodgers was full of steam now. "No, Captain. _You_ look! I work with these people, day in and day out. I need their cooperation. I need their trust and respect. I have had years building that up, long before you arrived. And yet I allowed my personal feelings to impart confidential information told to me by a colleague. And thanks to that, you used that to target your subordinate and, in the process, that's all jeopardizing my standing. Ultimately? It was my call to break that confidence – to my eternal regret, and if Detective Goren reports me for ethics violations, I wouldn't even blame him. But _you_ dragged me into this mess under false pretenses. So excuse me kindly if I'm not just a little bit _pissed off_."

Acting as if her speech deflated her, Rodgers sagged against her desk.

"Let's just call it a day and go to our separate corners for a while."

Ross' gaze skittered everywhere, and he ended up closing his eyes for a second, trying to regain his composure.

"Elizabeth, I truly never meant to put you in the middle of this. But the job…I had to be sure…" Ross realized he was speaking in fractured spurts. But it was all he had to offer.

Rodgers shook her head.

"Goodnight, Danny."

He slunk out of that morgue, like a thief in the night.

Realizing there was still paperwork to attend to before he went home – alone – Ross sighed, popped an aspirin without the benefit of water since his headache was now roaring, and made his way back to One Police Plaza. Once up on the eleventh floor, he was more than just a little surprised, after a cursory scan, that Goren was still around in the interrogation room after the mind fuck that his mentor, Declan Gage, had given him.

But he wasn't alone.

Through the observation window, he took stock of the situation. Eames sitting closely at Goren's side, whispering something to him. His eyes haunted, his back hunched, Goren literally looked like he was shouldering the weight of the entire world, but his eyes met Eames', and he squeezed her hand, then wiped an errant tear away. He could turn on the audio to hear, but since it was not related to any case, knew it was an invasion of privacy and figured he had done enough damage to the man for a few eons.

With a long sigh, he spared one final look at his detectives, seeing far more than colleagues. He wondered if they even knew how they looked to outsiders – and wondered, even if they did, if they gave a damn.

Even after all this time, he was an outsider.

He then walked out and made his way to his office.

Ross sat at his desk. It was full-on dark now, and he spied a tired old man reflecting from the window. The paperwork sat untouched. Deciding it was useless to fill anything out, as his concentration was shot, he was gathering his things when Eames sauntered into his office, holding a file.

Her voice was measured, in a completely impersonal, professional tone.

"Captain, I took the liberty of finishing up the paperwork on Gage. Everything is in order for the DA. Sign off when you get the chance." Placing the file on his desk, without another word, Eames turned to go.

"How's Goren?"

Eames turned slowly. Much like Rodgers, her mouth thinned, and her small hands balled into fists.

"Actually, Goren is at his desk, waiting for me. I'm taking him home tonight. So if there's nothing else…"

Her chin raised a fraction, as if waiting for an objection.

Ross stared back at Eames.

"Would you…would you please tell Goren I'm sorry?"

Forgetting their roles of boss and subordinate, Eames scoffed.

"You're sorry? Please."

Ross recoiled.

"You're from a family of police officers yourself, Alex. You know it goes when someone in a family situation ends up dead: the closest family members, then fan out."

Alex, however, was tired enough to not care if she was putting her career on the line. She glanced out at the sad, shattered man waiting for her at his desk.

Some things were worth the risk.

"May I speak frankly, Captain?" Eames' whiskey-brown eyes held concealed fire.

Ross found he had lost the ability to form words. Realizing even if he refused, Eames was determined to spill her bile. He reluctantly nodded.

"You have had it in for Goren since day one."

Opening and closing his mouth, Ross tried to defend himself. "That's not…"

"Let's not insult each other by saying it's not true, Captain." Eames began to list past incidents, counting on her fingers. "Telling me to 'watch' Bobby, questioning his findings, yelling at him on the first day when observing him with Gage." Eames face seemed to get redder the more she listed. "Did you even bother to read the file Deakins had left for you? Or did you just want to play "Good Tin Soldier" for the brass upstairs?" Eames crossed her arms.

Ross was feeling trapped. As such, when he dared trust himself up to speak, his voice held an edge. Gripping his desk, he leaned forward.

"Detective, if I hated Goren, he would have been gone the moment I arrived." He felt a bit indignant to be accused, yet he also felt helpless. And yes, even a twinge of remorse for the past. He shoved it aside.

"Did I or did I not put my own ass on the line at Tates for him?"

Eames gave a bitter smile. "After sending his nephew back and getting the ball rolling to begin with."

Ross closed his eyes. Reining in his rising temper, he opened them and pressed on.

"And Testarossa." Ross stared Eames down. "I kept my promise to get him reinstated."

Eames looked away, still raw at the memory of Ross and Bobby keeping the secret from her, even if she had long ago forgiven Bobby.

"For Bobby or for your precious clearance rate?"

Ross held out his hands, "Come on, Eames. Give me some credit there."

Eames looked contrite and was about to offer an apology to her low blow. However, whatever progress Ross was making was negated with his next ill-chosen words.

"You have to admit, with who his father is…"

Alex took a series of deep breaths, determined not to lose control. "You once said, during the Woody Sage case – another where you were all over Goren, by the way! – 'bad parents don't have to mean a bad kid'. Or was that more bullshit?"

Between Elizabeth and his current drama, Ross was about at his limit.

"Detective, you are skirting the edge…"

But Alex was not deterred.

"So, fire me then." She met Ross' gaze full on.

"You know, Captain, it's common knowledge that Wheeler's dad isn't exactly on the straight and narrow. Yet I have not once seen you on her back." Alex shook her head. "Or does the benefit of the doubt only apply to your hires?"

For his part, Ross looked away, not able to refute Eames' observation.

Alex shook her head. "Bobby was already hanging on by a thread. Yet instead of helping him, you were all too eager to cut it, Captain. So maybe before you wonder why everything is always so hard between you, maybe you can try treating Goren with the barest hint of respect and stop listening to upstairs. It would go a long, long way."

Without another word, Eames nodded and then left the office. Ross saw her through his door cross to Goren's desk, then touch Goren's shoulder as they walked out together, to all eyes a united team.

Grabbing his coat, Ross turned out the lights to his office and made his way home.

And decided the old worn adage was true: It was very lonely at the top.

Walking to his car in the parking garage, Ross wondered if that could ever change…

He hoped it wasn't too late.

_Fin_


End file.
